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Lara Secord-Haid

Lara Secord-Haid

Praised by international publications, soprano Lara Secord-Haid has been described as “possessing a rich and expressive overall quality” (Attencion San Miguel), “charismatic” (Opera Today) and was praised for her “flinty acuity” by the New York Times.

Ms. Secord-Haid is enjoying a diverse and dynamic international career. Recent performances include Sophie in _Werther _with Manitoba Opera, concerts with the Jeonju International Sori Festival in Korea and Opera Helikon in Moscow, and a 15-city operatic concert tour throughout China. Recent performances include Cendrillon in Cendrillon with New York Lyric Opera, a solo concert with Opera San Miguel, Marsinah in Kismet with Little Opera Winnipeg, Miss Jessel in The Turn of the Screw at Opera on the Avalon, Marzelline in _Fidelio _with Manitoba Opera, 3 Settings of Celan by Harrison Birtwistle with the AXIOM Ensemble at Lincoln Center, Miss Silverpeal in The Impresario at North Shore Music Festival, and Tytania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Opera on the Avalon.

Other roles in her repertoire include Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos for Manhattan Opera Studio, Suor Genovieffa in Suor Angelica at Manhattan Opera Studio, Donna Elvira in _Don Giovanni _at the Banff Center, Giulia in _La Scala di Seta _at Juilliard, and the Woodpecker in Janacek’s The Cunning Little Vixen, also at Juilliard.

On the concert stage, Ms. Secord-Haid has delved with keen interest into the study and performance of contemporary works. She performed an Alice Tully Hall premier of Ritual by Alessandro Iglesias Rossi and works of John Cage with both The New Juilliard Ensemble and Banff Centre with the resident new music ensemble conducted by Joel Sachs. She also sang Handel’s Messiah and Verdi’s _Requiem _with the Orchestra at Shelter Rock and featured works of Granados, R. Strauss and Rimsky-Korsakov in recital. She has been heard in recital on the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra’s summer concert series and where she also performed Tyzik’s 12 gifts of Christmas and Howard Blake’s The Bear.

Ms. Secord-Haid is the 2017 winner of the prestigious George London Award. She was also 1st place winner of the Upper Midwest Regional Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, advancing to the upper Midwest regional finals to win 3rd place. Additionally, she was named a Jeune Ambassadeur Lyrique in 2015 and 2016 by Théâtre Lyrichorégra 20 and was awarded the top Canadian Prize of Jeune Espoire Lyric Canadien as well as the Mexican, Austrian, Korean, Russian and the Chinese Lyric Bursaries and the Opera San Miguel Prize “for outstanding Artistic potential”. Ms. Secord-Haid recently took a top prize in the Orvieto International Singing Competition, was a finalist in the Benjamin Matthews Vocal Competition and has received awards from the Giulio Gari Foundation, the George London Foundation, the Manitoba Arts Council and the Winnipeg Arts Council. She has been a two-time finalist in the Canadian Opera Company’s Center Stage competition.

In 2018 Ms. Secord-Haid sang a concert at Linz Oper in Linz, Austria and Poulenc’s Gloria with the Greenwich Chorale Society. In 2019 she sang Jessie Anderson in the new opera No One’s Safe by Lizée and Ivany and workshops a new production of Silent Light by composer Paola Prestini and librettist Royce Vavrek, directed by Thaddeus Strassberger at the Banff Festival. She also makes her role debut as Michaela in La Tragedie de Carmen with City Lyric Opera and appeared as a soloist in a _Salute to Bernstein _with Little Opera Winnipeg. In 2020 she made a role debut as The Governess in _The Turn of the Screw _with Nashville Opera, returns to Manitoba Opera as Frasquita in Carmen, and sings the Maid in Thomas Ades’ Powder Her Face with Opera on the Avalon.

She holds a Master of Music from The Juilliard School and a Bachelor of Music from The New England Conservatory of Music. She was a fellow at the Internationale Meistersinger Akademie, attended Highlands Opera Studio, the Banff Center, the Conservatoire de Nice summer academy and the Spoleto Vocal Arts Symposium.

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